Cancer & Blood Diseases (Hematology/Oncology)

The Cancer & Blood Diseases Center at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland is nationally and internationally recognized for caring for infants, children, adolescents and young adults with cancer and non-malignant blood diseases. We are dedicated exclusively to treating pediatric cancers and blood diseases and offer sub-specialty expertise in all areas of childhood cancer. As members of the Children’s Oncology Group (COG)—the largest cooperative pediatric clinical trials group in the nation—our patients have access to an extensive range of clinical trials of new therapies and management of long-term treatment effects.

The Oncology Program at Children’s Hospital is at the forefront of cancer treatment and research—helping to develop and evaluate therapies that offer the best opportunities for survival and preservation of quality of life. We provide our patients with access to state-of-the-art diagnostic and treatment methods, including the option to participate in clinical trials using experimental therapies.

Our multidisciplinary approach to treating pediatric brain and spinal cord tumors using Children’s Oncology Group (COG) and Head Start Consortium protocols has been successful in minimizing the adverse neurocognitive effects of brain tumor therapy. We are proud to be the only pediatric medical center in northern California to offer Head Start Consortium therapy. By utilizing an innovative approach of intensive chemotherapy and peripheral blood stem cell rescue, we are able to avoid radiation therapy in many cases, thereby decreasing radiation-related brain injuries in young children.

Psychology Oncology Program

The Psychology Oncology Program (POP) at Children’s Hospital Oakland provides support and techniques to successfully manage the emotional toll of a cancer diagnosis. Led by psychologists Dina Hankin, PhD, and Pamela Orren, PhD, our specialized team of physicians, nurses, social workers, and child life specialists provides a safe and nurturing space for individuals to explore the challenges of being a child with cancer, or caring for a child with cancer. Services provided include emotional support and psychotherapy for patients, siblings and parents, school and social reintegration, and bereavement support.

Onology Late Effects Program

Follow-up care is critical to the health and well-being of childhood cancer survivors. Through our Long-Term Follow-Up
Program, we screen, monitor, and manage the health of young survivors. Our multi-disciplinary team assesses for potential medical and emotional late effects and ensures that our patients are experiencing the best possible quality of life. The program, directed by pediatric oncologist and survivorship expert James Feusner, MD, is available to children, adolescents, and young adults who have been off treatment for pediatric cancer for two or more years. The program is coordinated by Dina Hankin, PhD, Clinical Psychologist.

Radiation-Oncology

Pediatric radiation oncology services are provided at the Alta Bates Summit Comprehensive Cancer Center in Berkeley, in close cooperation with the pediatric oncology team at Children’s Hospital. The program is directed by Patrick Swift, MD, a member of the Children’s Oncology Group and its predecessors since 1984. A large, on-site physics group utilizes state-of-the-art technology and planning systems to deliver the newest forms of radiation treatment, including image-guided intensity modulated radiation, stereotactic ablative body radiotherapy, and total body irradiation for stem cell transplant preparation. Pediatric anesthesia is available when sedation is necessary.

Palliative Care Program

Children’s Palliative Care Program provides care for children with life-limiting conditions, focusing on enhancing quality of life and relieving suffering for the child, family members and other significant people in the child’s life. The program provides physicians, nurses, patients and their families with expert consultation and support for end of life care, chronic pain, bereavement and psychosocial assistance. The palliative care team works closely with home nursing and George Mark Children's House to transition patients to home or respite care.

The Blood and Marrow Transplant (BMT) Program at Children’s provides leading-edge care in all areas of hematopoietic cell transplantation, and is among the most comprehensive programs in California. The California Department of Health and Human Services has designated Children’s BMT program as a Center of Excellence for pediatric stem cell transplantation, and is accredited by the Foundation for the Accreditation of Cellular Therapy. We have performed over 200 transplants since the program began in 2000, and are proud of our 70% survival rate. We accept referrals for hematologic, oncologic, immune deficiency, genetic and other disorders.

The National Center for Sickle Cell Disease at Children’s Hospital was established in 1978 to deliver comprehensive care to children and adults with sickle cell disease. The center was initially funded by the National Institutes of Health as one of ten Comprehensive Sickle Cell Centers in the U.S. Our experts are leaders in transfusion medicine, and transplantation for sickle cell disease, and care for 600 patients and their families through all stages of their lives—from infancy, through adolescence, to a successful adulthood. There were over 2600 annual visits to our outpatient facilities where we provide comprehensive medical care; assistance with social services needs; psychological consultation; genetic counseling; and education about sickle cell disease and its management. We are active in national, multicenter clinical trials in sickle cell disease, and internationally, providing our expertise to programs abroad.

The Northern California Thalassemia Center at Children’s Hospital was established in 1991 to deliver comprehensive care to the growing number of thalassemia patients in the region. With more than 200 patients on active follow-up and over 1000 patient visits every year, the center is one of the largest thalassemia programs in the country. It is one of the few NIH-funded centers in the nation. We are also at the forefront of research to develop new treatments for thalassemia. Children’s offers families a range of therapies to monitor and enhance hemoglobin levels, maintain and improve chelation therapy, and provide support for patients and their families with thalassemia. Our renowned thalassemia research program allows us to offer patients and families the most up-to-date and innovative therapies. Our research has led to many advances in thalassemia treatment.

The Hemostasis and Thrombosis Center at Children's provides multidisciplinary, comprehensive care for children with congenital and acquired bleeding disorders. It is a regional hemophilia center. Services include diagnosis, acute and chronic medical management of hemophilia and its complications, genetic counseling, physical therapy, HIV care and counseling, and coordination with other services. Patient and family education, home infusion programs, assessment and treatment of bleeding episodes, community education and outreach, counseling, and family support are important components of this program.

We offer red cell apheresis iron overload and its complications in sickle cell patients that require chronic transfusion. We provide extracorporeal photopheresis (ECP) as a treatment for graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) in children, a potentially life-threatening complication after a bone marrow transplant. The biggest potential benefit of ECP is that children can avoid taking drugs like steroids that suppress the immune system to treat GVHD. ECP can be a safe and effective alternative. Other services provide stem cell collections for oncology patients anticipating bone marrow transplant and leukocyte reduction. We also offer plasma pheresis for a variety of neurologic and immune-mediated disorders.

Additional Services

Tumor Board

A tumor board is a meeting in which a number of doctors who are experts in different specialties review a patient’s medical condition and discuss treatment options to plan the most effective treatment for the patient. Highly trained cancer specialists such as:

Psychosocial Services

Psychosocial services are available to all children with oncologic and hematologic disorders at Children’s Hospital Oakland providing support to patients and their families. Each Hematologic subspecialty has a multidisciplinary team of physicians, nurses, and social workers that provide comprehensive medical care and emotional support to patients, siblings and parents, school and social reintegration, and bereavement support.

Newborn Screening for Hemoglobin Disorders

The Hemoglobinopathy Laboratory at CHRCO has served as the reference laboratory for the California Newborn Screening Follow-up Program since 1973, providing confirmatory diagnostic testing for newborns with hemoglobin disorders such as sickle cell disease and thalassemia. Children’s Hospital hematologists were the first to examine the natural history of the heritable blood disorder hemoglobin H (HbH), which is on the rise in the United States. Patients with hemoglobin H have a moderately-severe anemia because of gene defects leading to insufficient production of hemoglobin. Extended study of the evolution of the disease, made possible by newborn screening for the disease in California, has shown all forms of hemoglobin H are manageable and there is a decreased rate of morbidity if diagnosed at birth. The State of California, using Children’s Hospital Oakland as its reference laboratory, is currently the only state in the country that universally screens all births for Hemoglobin H disease. As a result of this vital service, approximately 1000 newborns with hemoglobin disorders have been diagnosed since the late 1990’s.

Bone Density Assessment & Research Program

Low bone mass is a significant problem in patients with hemoglobinopathies, with approximately 50-70% of adults with thalassemia and 40-80% of adults with sickle cell disease presenting with low bone mass. As therapy has improved, patients with thalassemia and sickle cell disease are living longer and are now at increased risk for debilitating bone pain, fracture and decreased quality of life. Our clinical and research staff perform both traditional scanning protocols (spine, hip & whole body) by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA), as well as full lateral spine scans to detect vertebral height abnormalities often before a patient complains of pain. Additionally we utilize a three-dimensional scanning tool called quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) to measure bone density and strength in patient-directed research. We are currently undertaking studies to asses different approaches to enhancing bone formation, including the characterization of physical activity patterns in patients with hemoglobinopathies and the use of vibration platforms, calcium, vitamin D, and zinc supplementation.

Iron Assessment and Research Program

Children’s Hospital is home to the only SQUID (Superconducting QUantum Interference Device) biosusceptometer (Ferritometer) in the United States which serves a clinical population. SQUID biosusceptometry measures the liver iron concentration (LIC). Iron overload is a potential life threatening problem in a variety of diseases including sickle cell disease, thalassemia, BMT recipients, hemochromatosis, myelodysplasia, and other heavily transfused populations. LIC is commonly measured by liver biopsy. SQUID biosuceptometry is a non-invasive, validated measurement of LIC that provides our experts with critical information for the management of patients over time. It can be done in very young patients without sedation or discomfort. Over the last decade the SQUID biosusceptometer at Oakland has performed over 2000 measurements on over 800 local and international patients at risk for iron-overload.

Cancer Research

The Center for Cancer Research (CCR) at Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute (CHORI) is committed to improving upon existing knowledge regarding all aspects of pediatric oncology, and translating these insights into meaningful advances in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of pediatric malignancies. The CCR fosters invaluable collaboration between clinicians and basic scientists in order to provide the highest standard in translational research and care. In this environment, clinicians provide basic scientists with information regarding the most critical challenges in diagnosis, prognosis and treatment in pediatric oncology, so they may focus their research on answering those challenges.

Children's Oncology Group - Cancer Research & Clinical Trials

Designated as a Children’s Oncology Group facility, Children’s Hospital Oakland is involved in leading-edge cancer research and clinical trials. The Children's Oncology Group is a National Cancer Institute supported clinical trials group, is the world’s largest organization devoted exclusively to childhood and adolescent cancer research. The COG unites more than 7,500 experts in childhood cancer at more than 200 leading children’s hospitals, universities, and cancer centers across North America, Australia, New Zealand, and Europe in the fight against childhood cancer.

Hematology Research

Millions of children world-wide suffer from the debilitating complications and shortened life-expectancies associated with sickle cell disease and thalassemia. Already nationally and internationally recognized for excellence in patient therapies and research, the Center for Sickle Cell Disease and Thalassemia at Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute (CHORI), is a global leader in advancing the scientific knowledge of these debilitating blood diseases. It is among the most comprehensive clinical and research centers in the world—housing the only not-for-profit Sibling Donor Cord Blood Program in the world, and offering access to national protocols in blood and marrow transplant that aim to cure children with the deadliest presentation of these blood disorders.

Hematology and Oncology Fellowship

The Hematology and Oncology fellowship program at Children’s Hospital accepts two fellows per year for three years of training. Applicants are accepted based on their potential to become successful academic clinicians and researchers in Pediatric Hematology and Oncology. Candidates are assessed on their academic credentials, communication skills, and personal qualities such as motivation and integrity.